Various types of fender covers have been used to protect fragile painted surface of automobile and truck fenders or the like, and to absorb spilled fluids, such as oil or grease. Automobile mechanics have typically placed conventional cloth rags on a front fender before working on the engine. These rags frequently slip from the fender to the floor, leaving the surface of the fender unprotected and picking up dirt and dust from the floor. When the mechanic picks the rag off the floor to place it back on the fender, the dirt and dust now carried by the rag may scratch the finish of the fender. In addition, such conventional rags typically are able to absorb only a small amount of spilled oil or grease, thus allowing unabsorbed grease and oil to coat and damage the painted finish.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,924,212 describes a vinyl cloth-backed fabric with flexible magnetic strips to hold the cloth on an automobile fender and to secure tools on the cloth, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,298,712 discloses a fender pad having foam rubber and vinyl layers, and a pocket for holding tools stitched to the vinyl layer. The Sealed Air Corp. of Fair Lawn, N.J. reportedly offers an adhesive-coated, bubble-cushioned masking for sale under the trade designation "Bubble Mask" for various uses including protecting painted automotive finishes during assembly (Plastics Engineering (Society of Plastics Engineers, Inc., Brookfield Center, Conn., February 1987) at page 49).
While these covers may be more able to remain in position on the fender than a conventional cloth cover, they are not designed to absorb spilled oil or grease. Undesirable results may include unabsorbed, spilled oil flowing along the surface of the cover, and possibly coating and damaging a painted surface of the fender adjacent an edge of the cover or spilling on the floor, where the mechanic is likely to walk through the oil and track it over the floor. Spilled grease or high viscosity oil may remain on the surface of the cover, where the mechanic or the mechanic's clothes are likely to come in contact with the oil or grease. In addition, an adhesive-coated cover may pick up undesirable dirt or dust when used in an automotive garage, which may then scratch the finish of the paint.
An additional problem with using these covers on automobiles being repaired in automotive garages and the like is that they are designed to be reuseable, and with the possible exception of the conventional cloth covers, they may be too expensive to be disposed after a single use. However, it is believed that disposable or semi-disposable covers would be particularly desirable for use in automotive garages, because the non-abrasiveness and cleanliness of the cover could be more effectively ensured if new covers are frequently used.